“I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue; I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me.”
Psalm 39:1
Many Christians that have been in a word of faith church for any length of time know and understand how important it is to speak God’s Word in faith, not the negative circumstances.
Mark 11:22-24: “And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”
Notice Jesus says that we shall have whatsoever we SAY. We Believe it, then we Say it. Many Christians will speak words of faith at church, when they feel full of faith after hearing a great message. Yet, the key to victory is not just speaking when we feel good and full of faith. It’s not just what we pray and say at church or during our prayer time before we start our day that matters. What we say throughout the day is just as important. It is much easier to speak in faith in a faith filled environment before we walk out the door and face challenges or after we’ve heard a great faith building sermon. However, the key to victory is what we say when presented with a negative circumstance during the day when we aren’t surrounded by believers or in a faith filled environment. We must remain consistent with our words. We must put a guard on our mouths when we are around others. It is important to continue to keep your confession of faith based on God’s promises, even in the face of negative circumstances and when those around you are speaking negatively.
After the Israelites were brought through the Red Sea and their enemies were defeated they sang a great song of triumph, full of joy. They sure believed God’s promises at that time because they could see it with their eyes. However, the moment they were faced with new circumstances that looked negative, they began accusing Moses and God of bringing them out to “die in the desert”. Time and again God did miracle after miracle. He brought water from a rock. He provided Manna in the desert. Yet each time when faced with the trial, they spoke negative words of unbelief.
Numbers 13 and 14 recounts what happened when it was finally time for the Israelites to take the promised land. Sadly, they were so used to speaking the circumstances in unbelief, that they talked their way out of going into possess the land. When the twelve spies searched out the land and found it to be exactly what God had said “Flowing with milk and honey”; instead of focusing on the promise God had told them that He was giving them this land, they focused on how big and strong the inhabitants looked. They began to say it would have been better to go back to Egypt and die there than to be brought to this land that “eats up its inhabitants”. They did not use their words to set themselves up to win the battle. Instead, they spoke words of defeat. Of the twelve spies sent out to survey the land, only Joshua and Caleb spoke words of faith. They decreed that they were well able to take the land and encouraged the people to go up with them immediately to take it. Yet the Israelites only spoke what they saw instead of what God said. They became so distraught by their own words of unbelief, that they even wanted to stone those who were speaking God’s promises. As a result, they would eventually indeed, “die in the desert” like they had kept saying over and over. Only their children, Joshua and Caleb would be able to enter the land. They had limited God with their unbelief and their words of unbelief. Joshua and Caleb said they could take the land and eventually they did. God kept them just as strong and young at 80 as they were forty years before. Joshua and Caleb chose to believe God’s word and speak it only, even in the presence of negative circumstances and those who refused to believe. As a result, they entered the promised land and took possession of it. They received the fulfillment of God’s promises in their lives and their children’s lives.
Romans 10:17 says: “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” The key to continuing strong in faith day and night is to continually be immersed in the Word of God. The more time you spend in God’s word, the more faith filled you become and the more you will “order your conversation aright.” Determine in your heart that you will receive all that God has promised you. Immerse yourself in His word. Speak His word in faith no matter what you see. Then watch, as God has already given you the victory!
Psalm 50:23
“Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me; and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.”
Further reading: Numbers 13 & 14, Exodus 14, Hebrews 11, James 1 & 3
